As someone that was introduced to alcohol at a young age and battled addiction throughout his teenage and young-adult years, Zack Ament knows the ins and outs of substance abuse well. After moving through his own recovery journey, he decided he wanted to make a difference and developed Westwind Recovery in Los Angeles, California. 

In today’s episode, he shares his journey to understanding his sexuality in the context of his family, developing a dependence on alcohol, how mental health fluctuates in the process of confronting addiction, and how recovery requires a strong foundation. 

 

“Rarely does someone come in and say, “I’m gonna take this one day at a time, slowly.’ I most often hear, ‘OK, I’m here. Help me get a job, a girlfriend…’ They make the decision to be sober and want to start working on everything else… It’s a slow process, and we really encourage people to get a strong foundation in their recovery before they start even attempting some of these things that add stressors to their lives.” (18:13)

 

Zack also encourages people to utilize the resources and professionals available to them in recovery because he understands how emotionally and physically taxing the process can be. It’s part of the reason why Westwind is so influential. It maximizes the impact of community support through its sober living houses. 

 

“There’s 12-step programs. You can go to an AA meeting/NA meeting, raise your hand, and say what you’re struggling with, and often that first step in helping yourself, everyone will rally around you and help you do what you’ve gotta do. ” (25:11) 

 

His journey to developing a well-known treatment center tells the tale of a man who experienced a great range of lows and highs both in his addiction, the loss of the love of his life, and single fatherhood. Through all of this, he has used his story, especially in the last 11 years of sobriety, to inform how he helps others in the Los Angeles area. 

 

In This Episode: 

• (2:05) Zack talks carrying chaos 
• (4:42) The fluctuation of mental health in and out of addiction
• (7:58) Zack’s introduction to alcohol as a child
• (9:13) How he understood his sexuality when he was younger
• (13:52) Zack’s experience coming out to his therapist and opening the Gay/Straight Alliance at his school
• (17:28) Entering into sober living 
• (24:34) How to get help and support on your sober journey
• (29:30) Meeting his husband and creating the sober living houses
• (36:46) Dating and love in a sober living house 
• (38:35) How effective is Zack’s bullshit meter? 
• (41:23) Grieving his husband’s death and becoming a single father
• (49:36) Service work in the Westwind community
• (51:14) Where to find Zack Ament          
• (52:01) Gay AA       
• (53:26) “I’m very happy today. Thank you.”  

 

Our Guest

Zack Ament is the founder and co-CEO of Westwind Recovery, a client-centered rehabilitation center for individuals that are recovering from alcohol and drug addiction. After having his own bout with addiction in childhood and young adulthood, he developed Westwind to create a safe space for people on their recovery journey. As an LGBTQIA+ individual and advocate as well, he believes in cultivating environments that allow people to grow and learn from substance abuse and dependence and ultimately move forward with their lives. 

 

Resources & Links

Off The Cuff

• https://www.offthecuff.fm/
• https://www.youtube.com/c/OffTheCuffwithDannyLoPriore
• https://www.instagram.com/1and1otc/
• https://www.instagram.com/dannylopriore/

Zack Ament

• https://www.instagram.com/zacktravels/?hl=en
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/zack-ament-165b3788
• https://westwindrecovery.com/

Mentioned

https://www.aa.org/find-aa